The Good Ones Are All Dead

Under threat of being placed in a red file, Callan is coerced into helping the Section hand over an ex-SS officer, Strauss, to the Israelis. The man in question appears to have changed his identity to an Egyptian businessman named Stavros (Powys Thomas), now living and working in London. Callan is appointed as his bookkeeper, where he wins Stavros’ confidence, but not that of secretary Jeanne Roche (Linda Marlow), though it is made obvious to Callan that Jeanne is more than just Stavros’ secretary.

Callan finds himself liking Stavros, and feels the need to be convinced that he is indeed the Nazi that Hunter says he is. However, Callan finds a German built strong box in Stavros’ flat which he is unable to open. He then meets with a German Jew, Berg (David Lander), who was Strauss’ servant during the war, and who would recognise Strauss at a glance.

It is arranged for Berg to attend an opera which Stavros and Jeanne are seeing, and following this, Berg admits to Callan that he was terrified in Stavros’ presence, so sure was he that this man was Strauss. With a blank key from Lonely, Callan manages to open the strong box in Stavros’ flat, to find a wealth of incriminating evidence, including the uniform of an SS officer, a leather pouch containing gold tooth fillings, and a book bound in human skin. Callan is caught by Jeanne, but it soon becomes apparent that it was Jeanne herself who revealed Stavros’ true identity to Hunter, in spite of her love for him.

While Meres deals with Jeanne, Callan confronts Stavros, who, now wearing his old uniform jacket, admits to his past. However, Callan sees this is a changed man, and to the fury of the Israeli, Avram (Tom Kempinski), he allows Stavros to bite into an ampoule of cyanide sewn into the lapel of the SS jacket. Stavros dies quickly.